And this is what I get....

for saying "F#@k it, I'll run that route". I started out around 10 am. Eager. Well rested. Well fed, and dressed for the weather. I had some zippy tunes and some interesting podcasts to listen to. Got about 2k into my run and encountered one of the nastiest routes I've ever preplanned. Of course when I planned this route I didn't bother to look at the grading of the terrain. Why would I? Ha...idiot!

What I encountered was the steepest hill I've ever come across. Its on Lyndebrook Road at the mouth of Huber Downs. Mountain Goats and all. I was running it but I had slowed to the point where I swear walking would have been more effective. Oh the lovely language that came out of my mouth in between gasps.

I hadn't gotten but 3K and change into my run when I seriously started contemplating digging out my cell phone and calling husband to rescue me. The only thing that stopped me, I suppose was the thought of him needing to stop everything he was doing and dress both boys (one of whom is sick) and put them in a cold car to come and save my lazy, intimidated ass.

So I didn't. I just dropped my pace by a few seconds and plodded on. The whole time searching for one of those podcasts on my ipod. Of course, I couldn't find it. I spent the better part of the first leg listening to the most boring broadcasts. Oddly, they aren't boring when I'm in the car. Just boring when I'm frustrated and running.

Got to Winchester and contemplated going across the highway until I got a drift of the amount of traffic. Decided to save that energy for the trip back and headed back down Coronation, in that nice downhill route that Ian had promised. Bullshit. Its not so much downhill as UP and down the same damn hills that I just crossed over.

By this time two svelte conditioned runners took up position behind me and followed my whole route back to Taunton. Oddly, they never lapped me. I didn't speed up to avoid it, my ego wasn't a factor. I kept reminding myself that this was my run, my pace. I wasn't going to let their presence intimidate me. I wound up running the mammoth hill that they didn't! When we finally met up with each other while waiting for a green light at Country Lane and Taunton, they were friendly. Full of compliments (they liked my jacket and commented on the hill I ran) and swapping comments about the crazy hills.

I love being a runner. I have never accomplished so much in such a short period of time, in anything else that I've taken on as a hobby. I love the community that I've joined. I am one of the many crazy people who run a route like this for the first time and think. "Cool....I may be insane but I rule!"